Below is the saga of how it took six months and 75 messages for Uber Support to admit a billing error. The issue was quite simple. The receipt indicated that I paid via Uber Credits, however my credit card was charged for the fare. After countless hours of back-and-forth, Uber finally claimed that the receipt is incorrect. However, Uber has still not updated the receipt nor refunded me.
On June 23, 2018, I took an UberX VIP ride from the Philadelphia Airport. The "VIP" designation is thanks to my American Express Platinum Card, which also provides me with regular Uber Credits to use for rides. Although apparently, the VIP service doesn't extend beyond the ride to include interactions with customer service. Anyways, when soliciting the ride, the Uber app indicated I had outstanding Credits. After completing the ride, I was emailed a receipt that showed that the fare was paid via Uber Credits as expected (and not by credit card).
Luckily when reviewing my credit card activity a week later, I spotted an Uber charge for the ride fare of $20.34. I contacted Uber's customer support via message/email (the only method Uber provides for support). Uber insisted that the credit card charge was a temporary hold. I disagreed, providing evidence that the charge had posted. Eventually, I resorted to disputing the charge with my credit card company. This first episode consisted of 7 messages over 2 days.
Fast forward several months to October 21, 2018. I request an Uber ride via the app, but get told that I have an outstanding balance of $20.34. Although I realize that Uber's system has detected the chargeback and is attempting to charge me again for the June 23 ride, I have no choice but to pay, since I needed the ride urgently. A few days later I message Uber support inquiring about this new credit card charge, despite the receipt still indicating that Uber Credit was applied. This second episode continues for 3 months and consists of 68 messages.
If you are interested in observing what a completely broken customer support system looks like, please read on.
Episode 1
Sent by Daniel H. on Tuesday, July 3, 2018 at 3:36:45 PM
My credit card ending in 4602 was charged the full amount for this ride despite my Uber receipt claiming the ride was covered with credits. What is going on? I have charged twice, once to my credits and once to my credit card.
Sent by samantaS on Wednesday, July 4, 2018 at 6:23:40 AM
Hi Daniel,
It sounds like you’re having some trouble with your account.
In order for us to address the issue, please provide details about the issue you're encountering or a screenshot of the error, if you are receiving one.
Looking forward to hear back from you.
Sent by Daniel H. on Wednesday, July 4, 2018 at 1:16:56 PM
Here is documentation of the issue. My trip details and receipt from Uber show that the ride was paid with via Uber Credit:
Reveal spoiler
However, my credit card ending in 4602 was charged the full amount for this ride:
Reveal spoiler
I had Uber Credit from my Amex Platinum card. It is VERY CONCERNING to me that my credit card was charged when the receipt does not reflect this. I am lucky that I closely check my credit card bill.
Please look into this,
Daniel
Sent by BS on Wednesday, July 4, 2018 at 1:56:48 PM
Thanks for writing in, Daniel.
Happy to explain.
The charge you’re seeing is an authorization hold that has already been voided by Uber. Here are the transaction details:
Trip Request: June 23rd, 2018 4:37 pm EDT
Authorization Amount: $20.34
Voided: June 24rd, 2018 4:01 am EDT
Uber places an authorization hold at the start of every trip, including trips that are later canceled. This is a standard practice to confirm that your card has enough funds to cover the fare.
You've been charged only the actual fare of $20.34 for this trip. Since Uber has already released the hold, the authorization amount should soon be released by your bank. This typically happens within a few business days.
Here's more information about how Uber uses authorization holds:
At the start of a trip, Uber places a temporary hold on your payment method for the amount of the fare shown before your request, or upfront fare. This will show up as a "pending" charge on your account. When the trip is complete, this hold is converted to a charge if the final fare was equal to the upfront fare. If your final fare is different than the upfront fare, the hold is voided, and the final fare gets charged to your payment method. In this case, you may see both the charge and authorization hold on your statement at the same time, until the hold is released by your bank.
To learn more about when the hold will be released by your bank, we recommend contacting them directly.
Sent by Daniel H. on Wednesday, July 4, 2018 at 2:26:40 PM
No the charge to my credit card is not an authorization hold. It posted on June 25, 2018 as my screenshot shows.
This is very disappointing that I've provided clear evidence of being double charged, and you are not looking into this issue more seriously. Please actually look into this... the next step for me is disputing the charge via Captial One, my credit card bank.
Sent by Jezreel A. on Wednesday, July 4, 2018 at 3:11:47 PM
Sorry to hear about the confusion, Daniel.
The other amount of $20.34 you are seeing is just an authorization hold and you were not actually charged for this amount.
Similar to how hotels charge their guests, Uber places an authorization hold at the start of every trip, including canceled trips. This is to ensure that your card has enough funds to cover the fare.
I have double checked and confirmed that Uber voided the authorization for $20.34 on 6/24/2018 4:01am EDT. The funds have been released to your bank. You will need to contact your bank for any additional details about when you receive the funds.
Once the transaction is successfully voided by Uber, we don't have any visibility into or control over the processing done at your bank.
We appreciate your patience and understanding on this matter.
Sent by Daniel H. on Wednesday, July 4, 2018
Okay thanks for looking into this. I contacted Capital One and disputed the charge, as according to their systems the transaction posted. Hopefully, you all can get to the bottom on where things went wrong as this seems like quite a serious issue.
Best,
Daniel
Episode 2
Sent by Daniel H. on Wednesday, October 24, 2018
The app and receipt showed that I paid this fare using Uber credits. However, my Captial One credit card ending in 4602 was charged $20.34. I openned a previous help ticket and Uber support claimed that the credit card charge was just an authorization hold, despite the fact that it had posted. Therefore, I disputed the charge with my credit card company.
Last Sunday October 21, 2018, I went to take an Uber ride and it would not let me proceed unless I paid an outstanding balance for $20.34. I was in a rush and clicked through the menus, it appears now that my American Express card ending in 1009 has been charged $20.34. Nonetheless the original trip receipt still shows that I paid for the ride with credits.
Please escalate this issue ASAP. Something is very wrong that I am repeatedly being charged when the original ride was paid in credits.
Sent by Adora Camille C. on Thursday, October 25, 2018 at 0:42:41 AM
Sorry to hear about the confusion, Daniel. Please allow me to look into this for you.
Upon careful review, I can confirm here the fare of $20.34 for this trip was successfully charged once under your card and not on your Uber credits.
Moreover, the other amount you’re seeing is just an authorization hold that has already been voided by Uber. Here are the transaction details:
Trip Request: June 23, 2018 4:37pm EDT
Authorization Amount: $20.34
Status: Voided
Uber places an authorization hold at the start of every trip, including trips that are later canceled. This is a standard practice to confirm that your card has enough funds to cover the fare. Since Uber has already released the hold, the authorization amount should soon be released by your bank. This typically happens within a few business days.
Glad to have assisted you.
Sent by Daniel H. on Thursday, October 25, 2018
Hi Adora,
Thanks for looking into it. I have confirmed that a $20.34 charge from Uber posted to my Amex card ending in 1009 on October 21, 2018. I think we may be in agreement here because you write: "I can confirm here the fare of $20.34 for this trip was successfully charged once under your card and not on your Uber credits."
This however is an issue that any card of mine was charged. The original receipt showed (and still shows online) that the fare was paid with credits. Here is a screenshot of an email receipt which I just requested from the system today:
Reveal spoiler
Note how it shows the fare was paid with credits. What is frustrating is that Uber support previously claimed that my credit card was not charged for this ride and agreed I paid with credits. However, my credit card ending in 4602 was charged. Hence, I disputed the charge with my bank. Now four months later, my card ending in 1009 has been charged. Meanwhile the receipt continues to show that my app credits were used to fund the ride.
Sent by jaspreet on Thursday, October 25, 2018 at 2:08:57 AM
Hi Daniel,
Thanks for getting in touch.
I have double checked and confirmed that Uber voided the authorization for $20.34 for your trip on June 23, 2018 4:37pm EDT. The funds have been released to your bank. You will need to contact your bank for any additional details about when you receive the funds.
Once the transaction is successfully voided by Uber, we don't have any visibility into or control over the processing done at your bank.
We hope this info is helpful.
Sent by Daniel H. on Thursday, October 25, 2018
Hi Jaspreet,
Are you saying you explicitly refunded my credit card ending in 1009? Otherwise, you have not addressed the problem. It sounds like you are saying that my credit card was never actually charged, which is false. Please read through all my previous messages in this conversation.
I will go ahead and dispute the Oct 21 charge for the card ending in 1009, like I did previously for the card ending in 4602. However, there is a big issue if Uber cannot recognize that they are charging my credit cards for this ride. I repeat that the receipt shows that the fare was paid in credits. However, two credit cards of mine have now been charged. These charges were not authorizations... they posted to the account. If you are unable to verify this, you need to escalate this ticket to an engineer, who can diagnose this serious system problem.
Sent by Bhavtosh G. on Thursday, October 25, 2018 at 3:23:23 AM
Thanks for writing in, Daniel. Happy to explain.
The charge you’re seeing is an authorization hold that has already been voided by Uber. Here are the transaction details:
Trip Request: June 23rd, 2018 at 4:37pm EDT
Authorization Amount: $20.34 from your payment method ending with 4602
Status: Voided
Uber places an authorization hold at the start of every trip, including trips that are later canceled. This is a standard practice to confirm that your card has enough funds to cover the fare.
You've been charged only the actual fare of $20.34 for this trip from your payment method ending with 1009. Since Uber has already released the hold, the authorization amount should soon be released by your bank. This typically happens within a few business days.
Here's more information about how Uber uses authorization holds:
At the start of a trip, Uber places a temporary hold on your payment method in the amount of the fare shown before your request, or upfront fare. This will show up as a "pending" charge on your account. When the trip is complete, this hold is converted to a charge if the final fare was equal to the upfront fare. If your final fare is different than the upfront fare, the hold is voided, and the final fare gets charged to your payment method. In this case, you may see both the charge and authorization hold on your statement at the same time, until the hold is released by your bank.
To learn more about when the hold will be released by your bank, we recommend contacting them directly.
Thank you.
Sent by Daniel H. on Thursday, October 25, 2018
Thanks Bhavtosh for this more articulate response. I see we are in agreement my card ending in 1009 has been charged for the ride. However, the ride receipt shows that I paid via credits, so no credit card should be charged.
Please do not explain authorization holds anymore. They have no relevance here since we are only discussing credit card charges that have posted.
Again the issue is that I was double charged: once to my credits and once to my credit card (which I previously disputed and now to another card).
Sent by SD on Thursday, October 25, 2018 at 3:43:08 AM
Thanks for writing in, Daniel. Happy to explain.
The charge you’re seeing is an authorization hold that has already been voided by Uber. Here are the transaction details:
Trip Request: October 21st, 2018 6:31pm EDT
Authorization Amount: $17.93
Status: Voided
Uber places an authorization hold at the start of every trip, including trips that are later canceled. This is a standard practice to confirm that your card has enough funds to cover the fare.
You've been charged only the actual fare of $2.93 from the card ending with 4602 and $15.00 was applied form Uber credit for this trip. Since Uber has already released the hold, the authorization amount should soon be released by your bank. This typically happens within a few business days.
Here's more information about how Uber uses authorization holds:
At the start of a trip, Uber places a temporary hold on your payment method in the amount of the fare shown before your request, or upfront fare. This will show up as a "pending" charge on your account. When the trip is complete, this hold is converted to a charge if the final fare was equal to the upfront fare. If your final fare is different than the upfront fare, the hold is voided, and the final fare gets charged to your payment method. In this case, you may see both the charge and authorization hold on your statement at the same time, until the hold is released by your bank.
To learn more about when the hold will be released by your bank, we recommend contacting them directly.
Sent by Daniel H. on Thursday, October 25, 2018
Hi SD,
Your reply is not relevant to the issue at all. I have no complaint regarding the ride I took on October 21, 2018 for $17.93 ($15 of which was paid via Uber credit). My complaint is in regards to the charge for $20.34 to my Amex card ending in 1009 on October 21 for a ride from June 23, 2018.
When I went to the app on October 21, I received a message that I had an outstanding balance. I clicked through until my Amex card was selected, since I needed to get rid of this message to confirm an urgent ride. I am guessing that the Uber system has registered that Capital One had performed a chargeback for the $20.34 charge to my 4602 card, since I disputed it. Therefore, the system indicated I had an outstanding balance. However, the issue here is that the $20.34 fare from June 23 was paid via Uber credit as the receipt shows. Therefore, there should have been no credit card charges or outstanding balances.
Sent by GZuiK on Thursday, October 25, 2018 at 12:31:49 PM
Thanks for reaching back to us, Daniel.
Happy to help.
Per the concern, we have double check your account transactions for this trip and would like to inform that the final charge was to your payment card ending in 1009 as the other charge on your card ending in 4602 is an authorization hold which has been already voided by Uber. For reference, we have also resent the receipt for this trip.
Please note that Uber places an authorization hold at the start of every trip, including trips that are later canceled. This is a standard practice to confirm that your card has enough funds to cover the fare.
To learn more about when the hold will be released by your bank, we recommend contacting them directly.
We hope this information is helpful and appreciate your patience.
Sent by Daniel H. on Thursday, October 25, 2018
Hi GZuiK,
We are in agreement that my card ending in 1009 was charged $20.34 for the trip I took on June 23rd. I received the receipt you resent for this trip. It is consistent with the previous receipts for this trip, which show that the $20.34 was paid via Uber credits rather than credit card. The issue is that I have been double charged... I paid via Uber credits as shown on the receipt and now a second time by my card ending in 1009.
Sent by Daniel H. on Friday, October 26, 2018
Hi GZuiK et al,
I haven't received a response to my last message. Can you please explain why I am being double charged for my ride from June 23? As the receipt shows, I paid via Uber credits. However, my credit card ending in 1009 has also been charged the full amount of $20.34. In fact, previously my credit card ending in 4602 was also charged, but I disputed the charge with Capital One.
Sent by Rob on Friday, October 26, 2018 at 11:31:51 AM
Happy to help, Daniel.
In order to locate these charges, could you provide me with the following details? To protect your information, please do not include your full credit card number.
For each charge, please provide:
- Date of the charge
- Exact amount
- Type of card (debit, credit)
- The first 6 and last 4 digits of the credit card
- The expiration date
In many cases, a family member or friend has used a credit card on their own Uber account.
Before sending us the details above, you may want to check with your family or close friends to ensure the charges were not from them.
Once you've provided us with the details above, we'll investigate the source of the charges. We look forward to hearing from you.
Sent by Daniel H. on Saturday, October 27, 2018
Hi Rob,
Here are the separate times I've been charged for the ride. All charges were for the full ride fare of $20.34. For each charge, I've submitted a screenshot.
Via Uber Credits on June 23, 2018 as shown in the app while requesting the ride and on the receipt. The screenshot shows my receipt from Uber:
Reveal spoiler
Via Visa credit card XXXX-XXxx-xxxx-4602 expiring January 2023, which posted on June 25, 2018. I disputed this charge and I believe Capital One performed a chargeback. The screenshot shows the posted charge from my online banking at Capital One:
Reveal spoiler
Via Amex credit card YYYY-YYyyyy-y1009 expiring January 2023, which posted on October 21, 2018. This charge occurred after the Uber app recently required me to pay an "outstanding" balance before being able to get another ride. The screenshot shows the transaction details exported from my online banking at American Express:
Reveal spoiler
Looking forward to hearing back ASAP,
Daniel
Sent by Daniel H. on Sunday, October 28, 2018
Hey Rob & team,
Any updates? Is the information I provided in the last email helping you diagnose or understand the issue?
Best,
Daniel
Sent by Rotchilly H. on Monday, October 29, 2018 at 10:43:51 AM
I completely understand how concerning it is to see an unknown charge, Daniel. I'm happy to point you in the direction here.
Daniel, upon checking on our end it seems that your Uber account the amount of $20.34 was initially charged to your card ending in 4602, however, it was disputed with your bank. When fare disputes are initiated, they create an outstanding balance on your Uber account since the bank returns those funds directly back to your card.
It appears that on October 21, 2018 at 6:31pm EDT the fare was successfully settled to your card ending in 1009. This is the reason why you are seeing this amount in your two separate cards. But the amount of $20.34 has been back to your card ending in 4602.
Hope this information helps. Please let us know if we can help with anything else.
Sent by Daniel H. on Monday, October 29, 2018
Hi Rotchilly,
Thanks for your assistance. I agree that at this moment, I have paid the fare only once by credit card (since I disputed the charge to 4602 with my bank and the funds were returned to my account). Soon I will dispute the charge to 1009 as well. The issue is that the receipt shows that I payed the fare via Uber Credits. Therefore, the Uber system has been double charging me: it charged my Uber Credits and my credit card for the same fare.
When I booked the ride, the app showed that I had Uber credits (in part due to my Amex Platinum card membership). The receipt for the ride shows that the fare was paid in "Credits". Therefore, my credit card should never have been charged.
Note that there is an insidious issue with the Uber system. My receipt continues to rightly show that the fare was paid via Uber Credits (see screenshots from prior messages). However the "My trips" page online shows the fare was paid via my card ending in 1009:
Reveal spoiler
Looking forward to hearing back,
Daniel
Sent by chiragS on Monday, October 29, 2018 at 3:42:36 PM
Hi Daniel,
Sorry to hear about the confusion caused.
We experienced a technical issue that caused a delay in processing your transaction.
The charge of $20.34 for the trip on June 23, 2018 was not collected at the time of the trip. This charge was processed on 22 Oct, 2018 and was only collected once.
You can review past trips through your app by clicking the three bars in the upper left hand corner and then clicking ‘Your Trips’.
We appreciate your patience as we process this transaction.
Sent by Daniel H. on Monday, October 29, 2018
Thanks chiragS for the reply. I am afraid you are mistaken on a few counts.
You write, "The charge of $20.34 for the trip on June 23, 2018 was not collected at the time of the trip." This is incorrect. In fact, the charge was collected twice immediately following the trip. First it was collected from my Uber Credits as shown on the receipt. Second, it was charged to my credit card ending in 4602.
On July 3, 2018 I noticed this double charge by looking at my bank statement and contacted Uber support. Uber support claimed the charge to 4602 was just an authorization hold, despite my repeated provision of evidence to contrary. Therefore, I disputed the charge to 4602 with my credit card company who performed a chargeback. As Uber support realized in the message by "Rotchilly H. on Monday, October 29, 2018 at 10:43:51 AM", this chargeback led to the Uber system charging me again for the fare, this time to the card ending in 1009.
However, the underlying issue has not been remedied. The issue is that the fare was collected from both my Uber Credits as shown on the receipt and from my credit card.
Best,
Daniel
Sent by LL on Monday, October 29, 2018 at 7:07:11 PM
Hi Daniel,
Thanks for reaching out. I’m happy to explain.
I’ve reviewed your account and can confirm that you were not charged twice for your trip on June 23rd, 2018 4:37pm EDT .
I understand that you wanted to use the payment method ending in 4602 for this trip. However, we were unable to complete the transaction on that card and we charged your payment method ending in 1009 instead.
If you would like to use the original card, please check with your bank to resolve any payment rejection issues.
Thank you for being so understanding.
Sent by Daniel H. on Monday, October 29, 2018
Hi LL, thanks for the quick reply.
The issue is not that I have been charged twice to my credit card. The issue is that I was charged the full fare to my Uber Credits as well as being charged the full fare to my credit card ending in 4602. I disputed the charge to 4602 and subsequently was charged the full fare to my card ending in 1009. As it stands currently, I have paid twice: once via Uber Credits and a second time via my credit card ending in 1009. The credit card charge, however, is errant as the ride receipt shows the fare was paid via Uber Credits.
Sent by Ma. Kathleen C. on Monday, October 29, 2018 at 7:53:19 PM
Hi Daniel,
We appreciate your patience and understanding with this matter. This is Kathleen from Uber Escalations team.
Daniel, like the previous agent told you earlier, I can confirm that you were not charged twice for this trip since we experience some technical issue when we attempted to charge your payment method 4602. We are able to complete the transaction on your payment method 1009.
I can also confirm that you currently do not have an Uber credits available balance on your account at the time of this trip.
Thank you for patience and understanding with this matter. Please let us know if there is anything else.
Sent by Daniel H. on Monday, October 29, 2018
Hi Ma. Kathleen C. Nice to see that this ticket has escalated to a higher level that can hopefully more effectively examine the issue.
When I requested the ride, the app showed that I had Uber Credits available. Note that I would not have chosen this method of transportation on June 23 had I no Uber Credits. The original ride receipt, as emailed to me on June 23, 2018 following the ride, shows the fare was paid using Uber Credits.
The mobile Android app previously showed a receipt that indicated the fare was paid via Uber Credits. However, when I just navigated to the receipt under "Your Trips > Trip Details > Receipt", I see the following:
Reveal spoiler
Now the mobile receipt shows both credit card charges (I understand that the 4602 charge is void because I disputed it with my bank). Perhaps your investigation somehow changed the mobile receipt?
Nonetheless, the receipt online and a resent email receipt still show that I paid via Uber Credits. Here is a screenshot of my receipt online (taken after I received your last message):
Reveal spoiler
Note how the receipt shows I paid the fare using Uber Credits. Therefore, it is incorrect to charge my credit card.
Best,
Daniel
Sent by Daniel H. on Wednesday, October 31, 2018
Greetings Escalations Team, I didn't hear back yesterday regarding my further inquiry. So just wanted to follow up and refer to my previous message with an unresolved support issue.
Best,
Daniel
Sent by Daniel H. on Thursday, November 1, 2018
Just writing to check-in on whether support has had the opportunity to look into my reply to Ma. Kathleen C?
Sent by VaibhavM on Friday, November 2, 2018 at 10:18:57 AM
Thanks for getting in touch, Daniel.
Unfortunately it appears your Uber Credit may have been switched off at the time of this trip.
You can toggle credit On or Off after you've set your destination and before you select your vehicle option. You can also see how many credits you have at any given point by clicking on Payment in your app menu.
Your credit is still available for your next trip. You can read more about enabling or disabling credits on help.uber.com
Additionally, if you're not able to see your Uber Cash balance in the Payments section of your Uber app, please restart the app. Be sure to completely close the app, rather than just leaving the app screen.
Here’s how to view your Uber Cash balance:
- Tap the menu icon in the top left of the app
- Tap "Payment"
- There you will see your balance of Uber Cash
Your current balance is $15.00
If you are still unable to see your credit balance after restarting the app, please send a screenshot of the "Payment" section of your app and we’ll investigate further.
Sent by Daniel H. on Friday, November 2, 2018
Hi VaibhavM,
Thanks for the information about how to apply Uber Credits to rides. I can confirm that my mobile app currently shows $15 of Amex Credits / Uber Cash.
However, I disagree that Uber Credits were switched off during my June 23, 2018 ride. Instead, the receipt clearly shows that fare was paid via Uber Credits. However, my credit card was also charged.
To help show what I've mean, I've applied red markup to my receipt retrieved today from the Uber website:
Reveal spoiler
Please note how the receipt shows the fare was paid via "Credits". Therefore, I do not believe the issue was that I switched Uber Credits OFF during this ride.
Sent by Divya K. on Friday, November 2, 2018 at 12:04:03 PM
Thanks for writing in, Daniel.
I understand your concern regarding the charges in your account. Let me address this for you.
I reviewed your account and i can confirm that you were not charged twice for this trip since we experience some technical issue when we attempted to charge your payment method 4602. We are able to complete the transaction on your payment method 1009.
I can also confirm that you currently have $15.00 Amex Credits available on your account.
Thank you for patience and understanding with this matter.
Sent by Daniel H. on Friday, November 2, 2018
Hi Divya K.,
I understand that I have only presently paid once via credit card for the June 23 ride (since my bank chargebacked the payment via 4602). However, my credit card(s) should have never been charged at all for this ride, because the receipt shows that I paid via Uber Credit. Please reference the screenshot with red markup I provided in reply to VaibhavM, which clearly indicates that the receipt shows me paying via Uber Credits and not credit card.
Sent by Daniel H. on Sunday, November 4, 2018
Hi Support,
Following up regarding my previous message.
Sent by AT on Sunday, November 4, 2018 at 7:38:35 PM
Thanks for getting in touch, Daniel.
Unfortunately it appears your Uber Credit may have been switched off at the time of this trip.
You can toggle credit On or Off after you've set your destination and before you select your vehicle option. You can also see how many credits you have at any given point by clicking on Payment in your app menu.
Your credit is still available for your next trip. You can read more about enabling or disabling credits on help.uber.com.
Sent by Daniel H. on Sunday, November 4, 2018
Hi AT,
I disagree that my Uber Credits were not activated for my June 23, 2018 trip. The receipt shows very clearly that the fare was paid via Uber Credits. Let me attach the screenshot of the receipt again, with my annotations in red:
Reveal spoiler
Why was my credit card charged when the receipt shows that I paid the fare via Uber Credits?
Sincerely,
Dr. Himmelstein
Sent by Lovely M. on Sunday, November 4, 2018 at 8:51:18 PM
Sorry to hear about the trouble, Daniel.
In order to best help you, I need to bring in another team. As soon as we have an update, we'll reach back out. We appreciate your patience while we get you the right answer.
Sent by Daniel H. on Tuesday, November 6, 2018
Thanks Lovely M. I am looking forward to hearing from the other team and the expertise they might bring towards solving the problem.
Sent by Ashish B. on Tuesday, November 6, 2018 at 8:20:40 PM
Hi Daniel,
We appreciate your continued patience.
We've shared your issue with another team to get the best help, but we need more time to resolve the issue.
We will let you know as soon as we have an update.
Sent by Daniel H. on Monday, November 12, 2018
Hi Ashish,
Can you please update me on the progress of the other team? Is my issue being actively investigated? When should I expect a refund and any other compensation for this issue?
Best,
Daniel
Sent by Armina G. on Monday, November 12, 2018 at 2:31:42 PM
Thanks for following up, Daniel.
We're still looking into this issue. We'll be sure to check back in with you once we've got a solution.
We apologize for the inconvenience and appreciate your patience all this while.
Sent by Daniel H. on Wednesday, November 14, 2018
Hi Armina G.
Thanks for the update. I'd like to follow up.
Specifically, is the charge to my card ending in 1009 going to be refunded soon or should I dispute the charge with American Express?
Best,
Daniel
Sent by MayankS on Wednesday, November 14, 2018 at 2:54:08 PM
Thank you for reaching out and letting us know about this, Daniel.
It appears the issue you are experiencing is already under investigation. We appreciate your patience as we work hard to resolve this issue as soon as possible.
Thank you.
Sent by Daniel H. on Saturday, November 17, 2018
Hi MayankS,
Thanks for the response. I would like to follow up again.
Can you see if there is any information regarding if progress is being made addressing the issue?
Sent by AT on Saturday, November 17, 2018 at 5:52:04 PM
Hi Daniel,
We appreciate your continued patience. We've shared your issue with another team to get the best help, but we need more time to resolve the issue.
We will let you know as soon as we have an update.
Sent by Daniel H. on Monday, November 19, 2018
Thanks AT for the response. Just checking in regarding progress on the issue.
As a reminder, my credit card was improperly charged, so the longer this issue drags on, the longer I am being deprived of my personal funds.
-- Daniel
Sent by Jerico G. on Monday, November 19, 2018 at 2:10:21 PM
Thanks for doing a follow-up, Daniel.
We're still investigating your issue and we'll let you know once we have the resolution for this.
We appreciate your patience regarding this matter.
Sent by Daniel H. on Wednesday, November 21, 2018
Hi Jerico G. Any update on this? I need to know soon whether to dispute the charge with my credit card company or whether Uber will resolve this issue promptly?
Sent by Rotchilly H. on Wednesday, November 21, 2018 at 2:39:41 PM
Hi Daniel,
We appreciate your continued patience. We've shared your issue with another team to get the best help, but we need more time to resolve the issue.
We will let you know as soon as we have an update.
Sent by Daniel H. on Friday, November 23, 2018
Hi Rotchilly H:
Happy Black Friday.
Can you give me a time estimate on how much longer it will take to address this issue? I would suggest that you refund me while the investigation continues as the pace of the "other team" has thus far been very slow. Is there any indication that the other team is actively working on the problem?
-- Daniel
Sent by AS on Friday, November 23, 2018 at 6:06:52 PM
Hi Daniel,
We're still looking into this issue. We'll be sure to check back in with you once we've got a solution.
Thank you again for your understanding and patience.
Let me know if you have any other questions!
Sent by Daniel H. on Monday, November 26, 2018
Hi AS,
Thanks for the reply. Any updates? As a reminder, the "other team" was brought in on November 4, 2018. So they have now been assigned the issue for 22 days, while I remain without remedy. Will they take much longer?
Best,
Daniel
Sent by DD on Monday, November 26, 2018 at 4:42:23 PM
We are really sorry for the inconvenience caused to you, Daniel.
We appreciate your continued patience. We've shared your issue with another team to get the best help, but we need more time to resolve the issue.
We will let you know as soon as we have an update.
Sent by Daniel H. on Wednesday, November 28, 2018
Hi DD,
Any updates? As a reminder this issue has been with the other team for 24 days now. In addition, this the 56th message between myself and Uber support regarding this problem.
Best,
Daniel
Sent by Ma. Kathleen C. on Wednesday, November 28, 2018 at 2:53:45 PM
Hi Daniel,
We appreciate your patience and understanding while we work on this matter to be resolved. We will surely let you know once we have the right answer for this matter.
Thank you for patience and understanding with this matter.
Sent by Daniel H. on Friday, November 30, 2018
Hi Ma. Kathleen C.,
Can you provide the direct contact information for the team that is working on this issue? As the previous 57 messages about this issue testify, these messages have not been an effective way to resolve the improper credit card charge.
-- Daniel
Sent by Rotchilly H. on Friday, November 30, 2018 at 2:28:41 PM
Hi Daniel,
I understand that this has been frustrating. Unfortunately, we're unable to provide direct contact information for the team currently working on this concern. Rest assured, that they are looking into this to identify the issue. We will get back to once the resolution has been provided.
We appreciate your patience and understanding.
Sent by Daniel H. on Monday, December 3, 2018
Thanks Rotchilly H. for the reply. Happy December! This will now be the 60th message with Uber support over this issue. Since your team appears to understand that there was an issue, why haven't I been reimbursed for the extra $20.34 charge? You can continue your internal investigation on your own time, but I don't understand why I should continually be denied financial remediation while the "other team" looks into the matter.
Best,
Daniel
Sent by Noel L. on Monday, December 3, 2018 at 4:10:15 PM
Thanks for reaching out, Daniel.
I understand that you deserve a credit at this point, however, processing the reimbursement will depend on the outcome of the investigation. We'll be sure to check back in with you once we've got a solution.
Thank you again for your understanding and patience.
Sent by Daniel H. on Wednesday, December 5, 2018
Thanks Noel L. for the considerate reply and recognition of the absurdity of this situation.
It sounds like Uber is unable to refund me until the investigation is completed. Therefore, it is of great interest to me how long the investigation will take. Can you provide me more information on the investigation? Specifically, which team at Uber is performing the investigation? Has the team made any progress with the investigation? How long do these investigations usually take?
Best,
Daniel
Sent by Laurence Red O. on Thursday, December 6, 2018 at 0:03:29 AM
Sorry to hear about the trouble, Daniel.
Please be informed that we are unable to provide a definite date and time on when will the system issue will resolve. Rest assured that we are doing our best to resolve this as soon as possible. We will provide you a feedback once this has been resolved.
Your patience and understanding are greatly appreciated. Thank you.
Sent by Daniel H. on Friday, December 7, 2018
Thanks Laurence Red O for the reply.
Note that it has now been over a month since the other team was brought in to help with the issue. I am worried that progress is not actively being made. As a reminder, my credit card was improperly charged and as such, the longer this issue drags on without the charge being reimbursed, the longer I am deprived of my capital.
Can you please prioritize the hasty resolution of this matter?
Best,
Daniel
Sent by Sam on Friday, December 7, 2018 at 4:24:04 PM
Hi Daniel,
We appreciate your continued patience. We've shared your issue with another team to get the best help, but we need more time to resolve the issue.
We will let you know as soon as we have an update.
Sent by Daniel H. on Friday, December 7, 2018
Hi Sam et al,
I am aware that the issue has been shared with another team. Please see my previous correspondences with Lovely M., Ashish B., Armina G., MayankS, AT, Jerico G., Rotchilly H., AS, DD, Ma. Kathleen C., Rotchilly H. (again), Noel L., Laurence Red O., and Sam regarding the investigation by the other team.
Can you check-in with the other team regarding whether they have made any progress? Specifically, you can message them, "the UberX VIP customer would like to know whether this issue is under active investigation and whether there is a timeline for its resolution?" Please then relay their response to me.
-- Daniel
Sent by Pankaj on Friday, December 7, 2018 at 5:17:29 PM
Hi Daniel,
We're still looking into this issue. We'll be sure to check back in with you once we've got a solution.
Thank you again for your understanding and patience.
Let me know if you have any other questions!
Sent by Daniel H. on Monday, December 10, 2018
Hi Pankaj, thanks for the reply.
I am interested in the details regarding the other team that is now looking into the issue. Can you provide me with the name and department of this team? Before you respond with a non-answer, please note that this is now the 70th message with Uber Support regarding this issue, so more details are certainly warranted.
Sincerely,
Daniel
Sent by Laurence Red O. on Tuesday, December 11, 2018 at 1:19:09 AM
Sorry to hear about the trouble, Daniel.
I'll make a follow up on this to the designated team. Rest assured that they are already looking into this matter and once an update has been posted, we'll keep in touch immediately.
Thank you.
Sent by Daniel H. on Wednesday, December 12, 2018
Thanks Laurence Red O. Were you able to get in touch with the designated team? And if so, did they provide any information regarding their progress on the matter?
Best,
Daniel
Sent by Rotchilly H. on Wednesday, December 12, 2018 at 1:55:50 PM
Hi Daniel,
We're still looking into this issue. We'll be sure to check back in with you once we've got a solution.
Thank you again for your understanding and patience.
Let me know if you have any other questions!
Sent by Daniel H. on Friday, December 14, 2018
Hi Rotchilly H.,
Unfortunately you did not answer my question. I specifically asked whether Laurence Red O was able to get in touch with the designated team and whether they provided him with any updates?
As a reminder, this is my 72nd message with Uber Support regarding this issue. The other team — whose name or department I have not been told — has been assigned to the issue for 40 days at this point.
One challenge has been that I don't have a dedicated customer support representative. Instead, every message I send receives a response from a different representative, who is unlikely to understand the gravity of this situation. Due to the number of messages I have sent, I have corresponded with certain representatives multiple times.
Here are the number of messages I have received from each representative: 4 from Rotchilly H.; 2 from Laurence Red O.; 2 from Ma. Kathleen C.; 1 from Adora Camille C.; 1 from Armina G.; 1 from AS; 1 from Ashish B.; 1 from AT; 1 from Bhavtosh G.; 1 from BS; 1 from chiragS; 1 from DD; 1 from Divya K.; 1 from GZuiK; 1 from jaspreet; 1 from Jerico G.; 1 from Jezreel A.; 1 from LL; 1 from Lovely M.; 1 from MayankS; 1 from Noel L.; 1 from Pankaj; 1 from Rob; 1 from Sam; 1 from samantaS; 1 from SD; and 1 from VaibhavM.
Would it be possible to be assigned a dedicated representative to correspond with for the remainder of this issue? I have been least unsatisfied with the support provided by Noel L., Laurence Red O., and Lovely M.; so I would prefer to work directly with one of these representatives on getting the matter resolved.
Sincerely,
Daniel
Supplemental code:
# Python 3 code to count the number of messages by author.
# Requires the markdown message log file 'uber-support.md'.
import collections
import pathlib
import re
text = pathlib.Path('uber-support.md').read_text()
pattern = re.compile(r'### Sent by (.+?) on')
names = pattern.findall(text)
counter = collections.Counter(names)
sorted_counts = sorted(counter.items(), key=lambda x: (-x[1], x[0].lower()))
summary = (
f'{len(names):,} total messages.\n'
'Messages per author:\n' +
'; '.join(f'{count:,} from {name}' for name, count in sorted_counts)
)
print(summary)
Sent by Daniel H. on Tuesday, December 18, 2018
Greetings Uber support, I haven't received a response to my message from four days ago (December 14). Can you please respond?
Thanks,
Daniel
Sent by Vanessa R. on Wednesday, December 19, 2018 at 0:29:54 AM
We're sorry for the trouble and we appreciate your patience with us, Daniel.
Upon checking here on our end, it shows that the card charged for your trip is your Amex card ending in 1009. It looks there was just an error on the receipt that was sent to you that is why it showed that your credit was used for your trip.
However, I can confirm that we did not make any deductions to your credit balance for the fare of your trip. Also, the reason why the Uber app is showing your card ending in 4602 for this trip is that it was the original payment method selected for your trip and that we attempted to charge it but was unable to do so. Which is why you were shown an outstanding balance that you settled using your card ending in 1009.
I hope this helps. If you have any more questions we're always happy to help. You can contact us anytime.
Conclusion
Wow! What incredibly dismal customer service Uber has. I am not sure of the legality of Uber's practices: for example, charging a payment method not listed on the receipt; failing to fix an incorrect receipt; or the outrageously obstructive customer service. Anyways, there are likely other Uber customers in a similar situation — that could form a formidable class — so please do get in touch.
License
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YTD, I have been screwed by Uber 4 times. They are charging me for erroneous cancellations or waiting time by the driver. It's ridiculous, but not like your case. That is just pure stupidity.
I have switched to Lyft or make my friend use their Uber app, haha.
It seems they should be better called Über ... above everything and everyone.
Ouch. That's even painful to read. I would have been hot going through those conversations. And their final conclusion is, "there is just an error on the receipt"? That's not an answer. How does "just an error" happen on a receipt? Did they make sure that "just an error" won't happen again?
So I guess their theory is: 1.) the customer accidentally didn't realize that payment via credits was turned off, and 2.) at exactly the same moment, their billing system independently had "just an error on the receipt". And the error on the receipt just happened to match the customer's error - exactly. I think that's a pretty unlikely theory, unless it was a longstanding bug in the app, but if that's the case then they should own up to it. It definitely makes me wonder how many people were similarly impacted, but didn't happen to notice.
If your credit balance truly didn't have any deductions, then I guess it's a wash - financially, but that's a far cry from how the payment and remediation process should have gone.
Thanks for your careful reading and inference regarding the potential causes.
It's hard to know whether my Credit balance had a deduction because I'm not sure of where that balance is tracked over time. The Credits often expire and get replenished so it's hard to know for sure what my Credit balance was at that time.
I think there was/is an error somewhere in Uber's system. Part of the system believes I had Credits when the ride was taken, and another part of the system believes I didn't have Credits. This is a major red flag of a serious bug that should have escalated this issue to a high-level engineer to diagnose and remedy. Instead, eventually the issue was allegedly sent to another team, but as far as I can tell, this "other team" never looked into it.
Yeah, I imagine I can't be the only one. It's a hard error to catch, since it requires you to scrutinize your credit card charges closely. I've never encountered a situation before where a company refuses to honor the method of payment shown on the receipt.
Seriously?! This just happened? In the 21st century? Wow. I don´t use Uber so I am not familiar with how it works but I know this service is increasingly popular all over the world (even here in Central America, for example) and I am shocked by how horrible their customer service is. This is incredible.
Yes, I am certainly using Uber less due to this experience. I'd rather walk 2 miles than support this rotten company. It's a shame, because the concept is good in theory, but the implementation is getting sloppy. Apparently, it's no better for drivers (compared to riders) according to this Redditor:
Wow. This company seems to be rotten all trough. In my homeland (Czech Republic), Uber is - among other things - famous for their neverending fights with taxi drivers. But I literally mean fights - there have been a lot of cases already where Uber drivers and taxi drivers physically attacked each other, especially in Prague.
I rarely use either of them though. I am a walker and I don´t mind walking around for long miles. I really hope you will win your case Daniel. The Uber behavior is absurd.
Yes, as the technology required to hail a ride continuous to increase, I find myself walking more and more! Ha. There are important environmental reasons as well to eschew the motor transport.
Exactly. Walking is awesome and it has so many advantages over any motor transport. I just wish more Americans were like you. I don´t know how much the general approach towards walking vs. driving has changed since 2010 when I spent a couple of months in different US states and was thus able to get an idea but it was pretty bad back then. Every time I asked someone for a direction to a place I wanted to see, they told me "take a taxi / bus / train / whatever" - even when the place was literally just around the corner.
Great job documenting the email exchanges showing how unhelpful and incompetent Uber's customer service is!
I would say "Absolutely barbaric!" but you wouldn't get the reference (hint: it's a meme).
External Links
I'll edit this comment to keep track of external resources related to this post.
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